“Transgender Cave Man”? A Debated Case that Changed Archaeological Inquiry

Figure 1: Copper Period burial classified as either a "transgender" or "homosexual" individual

Archaeologists learn about people in the past through their material cultural remains that are left behind.  The nature of archaeological research requires analyzes what is often an incomplete material record, which requires consistent and precise analysis.  Typically, conclusions are not reached unless there is sufficient evidence to support them.  Patterns within the data are one means of reaching a conclusion, but when an anomaly within the data occurs this can lead to serious debate within the archaeological community.  This was definitely the case with a discovery outside of Prague in 2011.

 

In April 2011 a team of archaeologists from the Czech Archaeological Society released a statement.  In their statement they claimed to have discovered evidence of either a “homosexual” or “transgender” burial (Figure 1).  They referenced the discovery of a burial from Corded Ware culture (the 2900 and 2500BC) of the Copper Age.  The burial included one individual who was found with grave goods associated with women.  These included a jug and an egg-shaped vessel.  Previous analyses concluded that these grave goods were domestic goods interred with women. The deceased individual was also facing east, another pattern consistent with Corded Ware female burials. The researchers initially concluded that the burial was that of a woman based on these pieces of evidence.  Upon further analysis of the bones, however, a different conclusion was made.  The bones were that of a male.  Corded Ware period males are typically buried with weapons and tools and buried with their heads facing the west.  Ultimately, the opposition of the osteological conclusion of a male individual coupled with the feminine positioning and grave goods led the scholars to reach their conclusions that this individual must be either “homosexual” or “transgender”.  They entertained the notion that this individual may have been a shaman (as men did occupy that role), but the lack of rich and number of the grave goods with the burial led to a quick rejection of this possibility. They instead cited their previous discovery of a Mesolithic burial of a woman who was found with masculine grave goods as evidence to support their final conclusions about the Copper Age burial.

 

Immediately, the archaeological community entered into a frenzy about the accuracy of these conclusions.  Several dissenters came out, calling into question the precision of the osteological methods used.  Others pointed out that modern gender categories and definitions cannot be applied to other contemporary cultures, let alone past cultures.  Ultimately, the conclusions about this particular burial remain in question, but this particular case led to a greater acknowledgement and study of gender, particularly the concepts related to transgender identity categories, in the past.  So while it remains unclear who this individual was within their society this individual remains an important part of archaeological discourse as the breakthrough in better understanding the past.

 

References

Adams, W.L. "Archaeologists Find ‘Gay Caveman’ Near Prague." Time 7 April 2011. Electronic.

Everhart, A.R. "Bones without Flesh and (Trans)Gender without Bodies: Querying Desires for Trans Historicity." Hypatia (2022): 601 - 618. Print.

Geen, J. "5,000-year-old ‘transgender’ skeleton discovered." Pink News 6 April 2011. Electronic.

Peralta, E. "Researchers Dig Up 'Homosexual Or Transsexual' Caveman Near Prague." NPR 7 April 2011. Electronic.

 

The Fa’afafine of Samoa

Fa'afafine at a pageant (Source: Samoan Fa'afafine Association )

 

Across the globe there are various cultures that exist. Many cultural groups may share similarities, but each is unique.  Among non-Western cultural groups there is a common thread in that gender does not exist in a binary.  There are various gender categories, which is simplified in description as a third gender, which is defined as the existence of three or more gender categories.  Among cultural groups within third genders these individuals who are not male or female (within the Western conceptions of male and female) occupy distinct roles and are celebrated for their gender identity and special roles.  Today’s blog post is dedicated to addressing one such gender category that exists among Samoans: the fa’afafine.

 

The fa’afafine are what Western cultural groups would call transwomen, or men who identify as women.  Not much is known about the history of fa’afafine among Samoans due to Christian missionaries attempts to suppress and erase fa’afafine and other third gender people from Samoan culture.  This means that the history of fa’afafine (and fa’afatama, transgender men) is imprecisely known.  Therefore, what will be presented herein is the modern conceptions of what it means to be fa’afafine.

 

In Samoan culture there are four gender categories: female, male, fa’afafine, and fa’afatama. Fa’afafine and fa’afatama are individuals who occupy the gender roles outside of their born sex.  Some define this occupation as permanent, while others claim this is fluid, meaning individuals can and do move between male and female roles.  A great deal of contemporary study has been completed on fa’afafine, with less on fa’afatama.  Early scholarship promoted various misconceptions about what it means to be fa’afafine, in large part due to Western biases against third gender people.  Some assertions that are no longer accepted include the notion that parents would choose which of their sons would become fa’afafine in order to garner greater status or make up for not having enough daughters.  This is not supported by any evidence.  Boys and young men are recognized as potentially being fa’afafine, but these individuals have to self-identify and transition as they feel comfortable.

 

Today, the fa’afafine occupy special roles within Samoan societies.  They are individuals who are responsible for taking care of the elderly.  They also occupy roles as sex education and sexual health educators.  This is because these are taboo topics that cannot be addressed by men or women, allowing individuals who occupy both or neither role the responsibility of discussing them.  Fa’afafine today are celebrated for who they are and what they do.  They participate in various pageants, similar the Drag Pageants that exist in the Western world, and many times the proceeds from these pageants go toward paying for elderly care.  Additionally, these pageants act as reclamations of a Samoan tradition that had been suppressed by Christian missionaries: the taupou.  Traditionally, the taupou was a ceremonial hostess selected by the village’s high chief, and the taupou not only represented the village but entertained visitors.  This was a prestigious role for the chosen individual that fell out of favor as Christianity spread throughout the Samoans.  The fa’afafine have brought it back as a means of celebrating their gender identities and cultural roots.

 

While the Fa’afafine are celebrated today they were cast out of Samoan society throughout the 1950s into the 1970s.  This led to them being demonized as sexual deviants as they were characterized as sex workers and thieves.  As cultural norms reverted back to strong traditional Samoan values the value of the fa’afafine reverted back to one of celebration and appreciation.  Despite the challenges that the fa’afafine have and continue to face in some places their continued existence speaks to their resilience, as well as the resilience of Samoan culture as a whole. 

 

Works Cited

ABC/Cinemedia. "Fa'afafine - Samoan boys brought up as girls." 2005. Charting the Pacific. https://www.abc.net.au/ra/pacific/people/hazy.htm. 6 April 2025.

Natural History Museum. "Beyond Gender: Indigenous Perspectives, Fa’afafine and Fa’afatama ." 1 September 2020. Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County. https://nhm.org/stories/beyond-gender-indigenous-perspectives-faafafine-and-faafatama. 6 April 2025.

Schoeffel, Penelope. "Representing Fa ‘afafine." Gender on the edge: Transgender, gay, and other Pacific Islanders (2014): 73.

Utopia Washington. "60 Years of Fa’afafine History: A Timeline of Herstory Makers & Events surrounding Them in American Samoa." 14 June 2022. Utopia Washington. https://utopiawa.org/60-years-of-faafafine-history-a-timeline-of-herstory-makers-events-surrounding-them-in-american-samoa/. 4 April 2025.

Vasey, Paul L., and Nancy H. Bartlett. "What can the Samoan" Fa'afafine" teach us about the Western concept of gender identity disorder in childhood?." Perspectives in biology and medicine 50.4 (2007): 481-490.

 

Homosexuality among the Aztecs?

Indigenous populations throughout the Americas had thriving cultures and lives before European conquest.  They had a range of societal types, ranging from foraging to state level societies.  In addition, each group had their own languages, belief systems, subsistence strategies, social systems, and more.  Examples of this brilliance is present at Cahokia and among the Ancestral Puebloans, Maya, Olmec, the Chinchorro, and many other Indigenous American populations throughout time and space.

 

These people were not the godless heathens that European conquerors made them out to be.  This narrative was promoted by the Spanish Conquistadors as justification for conquering and controlling Indigenous American populations.  One of their base accusations that “validated” the Spanish Conquest was that Indigenous populations were sodomites living in sin.  The Spaniards claimed Indigenous populations were accepting and supporting sinful behaviors, including but not limited to homosexuality and sex work, and therefore these populations needed to be beaten into submission to live a sin-free life.  The Spanish were successful in their mission, going forth and wiping out Indigenous ways of life by burning their records, temples, and more, and forcibly converting and assimilating Indigenous populations to Catholicism and Spanish/European ways of life.

 

It is within these frameworks that creates a situation where it is difficult to accurately assess what Indigenous people’s lives were prior to conquest.  While some evidence does exist they are often interpreted through contemporary lenses, not necessarily from the perspectives of the Indigenous populations themselves.  Furthermore, much that has been written about Indigenous populations at the time of Conquest was written by individual who were strongly influenced by the Spanish, leading to a Spaniard-bias when interpreting Indigenous ways of life.  With this in mind this blog post will address the topic of whether or not homosexuality existed within the Aztec culture and to what extent it was accepted or not.

 

The Aztecs, or as they called themselves the Mexica, maintained a massive state level society.  Its capital is currently under the modern-day site of Mexico City, and the Mexica’s territory covered much of modern-day Central America.  There is much known about the Mexica due to archaeological analyses of their material culture and the Spaniard accounts of their lives during the Conquest.  One such text, the Florentine Codex, was written by Friar Bernadino de Sahagún, a Catholic clergyman who worked closely with the Mexica and other Náhua people.  He also learned their language and formed a rudimentary dictionary of several of their words. 

 

Some of these words included those associated with homosexuality and gender, including transgender identity.  Sahagún reported at least three words, which include xochihua, cuiloni, and patlachuia or patlache, that fall within these categories.  He provided translations of the Náhua words based on his Spanish worldviews, leading to some potential bias and inaccuracies within the interpretations he provided.  Xochihua has been interpreted as either meaning a transwoman or homosexual male. Cuiloni is interpreted as mean a transwoman, although it could also be a slur against effeminate homosexual men.  Patlachuia or patlache can mean either a transman or a homosexual woman.

 

Within Sahagún’s view and interpretations none of these words were positive or favorable.  He provided very vulgar and offensive analogies of what he thought the associated concepts of homosexuality and transgender identity meant among the Aztec/Mexica/Náhua worldview.  This complicates understanding and interpreting the values and beliefs of homosexuality and transgender identity among Central American populations.  What is clear is that homosexuality and transgender individuals did exist among these populations.  What is unclear is if they were taboo, tolerated, or celebrated.  Scholars are unable to agree on this matter. The very existence of homosexuality and transgender identities, however, demonstrates that these are phenomenon that have existed for far longer than some believe.

 

Bibliography

Garcia, F. (2020). Exploring the Colonization of Mexico by the Spaniards: Homophobia in the Mexican Community through the Catholic Church. Davis: University of California.

Gontijo, F., Arisi, B., & Fernandes, E. (2021). Mesoamerica. Queer natives in Latin America: Forbidden chapters of colonial history, 9-23.

Sigal, P. (2002). Gender, male homosexuality, and power in colonial Yucatan. Latin American Perspectives, 24-40.

Wawzonek, J. J. (2017). Sodomitical Butterflies: Male Homosexual Desire in Colonial Latin America. Mount Royal Undergraduate Humanities Review (MRUHR), 98-114.